South Korea discovers unclosed North Korean crenels

By

Wooyoung Lee

North Korean soldiers inspect the demolition of one of the South Korean guard posts (GPs) inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on Dec. 12, 2018, in this photo provided by the defense ministry in Seoul on Dec. 17. Also on Dec. 12, South Korean soldiers inspected 10 demolished North Korean GPs in accordance with an earlier inter-Korean military agreement. Photo by Defense Ministry/Yonhap

SEOUL, Dec. 17 (UPI) -- The South Korean military said that it spotted one or two unclosed crenels in the border area where North and South Korea agreed to destroy guard post facilities.

The crenels were found to be intact during an examination conducted by North and South Korean military officials last week, according to Yonhap News.

"A few open crenels were discovered inside an unidentified landmine area, but we confirmed they are unfunctional," said Seo Wook, head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's operational headquarters, at a news briefing on Monday in Seoul, according to Newsis.

Seo briefed major outcomes of the cross-examination of the demolition South and North Korean guard posts (GPs) inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

"The Defense Ministry and the Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that every armed forces and equipment has been withdrawn from North Korean GPs," said Seo.

Ground facilities such as ammunition storage and barracks were confirmed to have been demolished, according to Seo.

North and South Korea closed 11 guard posts each at the border area, which involved removing armed forces and equipment, under a military agreement signed in September to ease military tensions between the two countries. Ten of them have been demolished while one remains preserved.

Last week, military officials visited closed guard posts on each side to confirm whether the closure met agreed requirements such as withdrawal of guns, crenels and whether underground paths and facilities are dismantled, according to South Korea's Defense Ministry.

Another South Korean military official said that North Korea asked the South to get rid of remains from destroyed guard post facilities during the verification, according to the Yonhap News report.